Why not hanging for carrying out the death penalty?

Chanakya said:
Helium's supposed to be painless, isn't it? I think there's a place in ...Sweden?, that legally lets you off yourself, pleasantly, painlessly. It's kind of expensive, but it's all very ...well, nice. I'd seen a documentary about it one time, either on TV or on the net, I forget which. I could be mistaken, but I kind of think, I kind of half-remember, they use helium.

So whatever they use there, is probably the best way we have today to off someone. So it would seem a no-brainer to use that for death sentences, in those places that still have that barbaric punishment.


eta: Do they fill them up with drugs first, to alleviate anxiety and fear and so on? That should be common knowledge, but I'm afraid I don't know! They should, if they don't. Fill them up with a bunch of chemicals that'll have them smiling ear to ear, then hook them up to that helium contraption thing, while listening to music they like or watching some movie they like or whatever, and have them drift off quietly to sleep and death. Pretty nice way to go, that, if go you must. And no reason why it shouldn't be doable, that I can think of (well, unless people object to making it pleasant for criminals on death row).
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1) I think nitrogen displaces oxygen more efficiently than helium does.
2) Nitrogen will accomplish the alleviation of fear and anxiety *while* killing them.
 
Olmstead said:
Well, my response was tongue-in-cheek, and I'm actually against the death penalty in all cases, but it's also true that potential innocence isn't relevant to this particular discussion, as it simply has no bearing on whether a method is suitable or not. It would be relevant in a discussion on whether a state should be killing people in the first place, but we're obviously past that step in this scenario.
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It's particularly relevant in my opinion. First one must address that issue. Otherwise all executions should be stopped, period, discussing means of execution put on hold.

In the meantime, save up a stockpile of confiscated fentanyl.
 
Darat said:
Because as I said in my opening post this thread isn't about whether the death penalty is right or wrong it's about what seems to be a blind spot in the USA regarding methods of executions.
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And that blind spot is? :confused:

It's a different discussion, BTW, whether the death penalty is wrong morally or whether it is wrong because the justice system is incapable of only convicting guilty parties.

I'm fine with executing a certain number of murderers. The criteria might need some better standardizing, but lots of murderers should, IMO be executed.
 
Skeptic Ginger said:
And that blind spot is? :confused:
It's a different discussion, BTW, whether the death penalty is wrong morally or whether it is wrong because the justice system is incapable of only convicting guilty parties.

I'm fine with executing a certain number of murderers. The criteria might need some better standardizing, but lots of murderers should, IMO be executed.
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That hanging works great (usually and if done by an expert), so why are we having such a conundrum about not being able to find lethal injection meds?
 
Emily's Cat said:
Mmm... experimental other than the people who died from being dumbasses while ripping whippits ;)

It should be a pretty painless way to go, and unless they get crazy with it, it should also be fairly inexpensive. Nitrogen displaces oxygen, while providing a nice giddy feeling.



So far as I can tell, the reluctance to hanging is that it is often done poorly. We're not supposed to torture prisoners, and by extension those being executed as criminals. A properly done hanging snaps the neck resulting in a very quick and efficient death... but a poorly done hanging results in the person slowly suffocating and choking over a long period of time.

Firing squads always seemed reasonable to me... but that has additional complications as well. A clean shot is quick, a poor shot is painful and slow.

Personally, I don't see why we don't use the same methods used for euthanizing our pets. Sedative, followed by a nervous system depressant. Quick, painless, non-traumatizing to everyone involved. They just go to sleep and never wake up again. It's also inexpensive, which is a bonus in my view.
Electric chairs have always seemed like a horribly inhumane thing to me, as well as being needlessly costly.
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Having sadly to experience that with euthanizing my cat a few years back, I was wondering that too. Like it doesn't work with humans?
 
I, regrettably, was a big muti-drug user in my 20's. I took barbiturates on many occasions - intravenously.
My memories of that buzz and drifting into unconsciousness, IME that wouldn't be a terribly distressing way to check out.

Apart from the odd toke I've been clean for 40+ years and I shudder at the times I found myself coming round at a hospital. I don't use alcohol.


I am disgusted by the very idea of capital punishment.
 
bruto said:
True, but isn't it a little odd to say you deserve to be killed but deserve to preserve your dignity? I know there are cultural taboos and all, but if you're actually being executed by people who think execution is appropriate, who should give a flying expletive what you think? You're the author of your own indignity, or would be if your killers are right.
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That's logical, but that's not where Western Civ culture has arrived. Let me put it this way: how many depictions of the Crucifixion have Jesus nude?

We're not a logical people.
 
Ziggurat said:
I know it's a joke, but never give government a monetary incentive to perform executions.
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If you want to make real money, sell the right to actually perform executions. People would pay thousands to pull the switch, inject the drug, whatever. Even more if the condemned is particularly notorious. It would make a fortune.
 
Emily's Cat said:
1) I think nitrogen displaces oxygen more efficiently than helium does.
2) Nitrogen will accomplish the alleviation of fear and anxiety *while* killing them.
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Nitrogen is certainly plentiful - our atmosphere is loaded with it - and does not present the storage problems that helium does.

Thinking back to a time when I was given nitrous oxide during a medical procedure. The feelings of euphoria were such that I didn't give a damn what was happening to be. So use nitrous oxide first and when the condemned is high as a kite switch it to straight nitrogen. Not only humane but actually a pleasant way to die.
 
Steve said:
Nitrogen is certainly plentiful - our atmosphere is loaded with it - and does not present the storage problems that helium does.

Thinking back to a time when I was given nitrous oxide during a medical procedure. The feelings of euphoria were such that I didn't give a damn what was happening to be. So use nitrous oxide first and when the condemned is high as a kite switch it to straight nitrogen. Not only humane but actually a pleasant way to die.
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Bypass all that. If you really want to intentionally kill people humanely in a controlled environment (again, not a fan), OD with heroin. You'd think there'd be a lot leftover in FBI sting operation evidence files.

Of course it would need to be vetted first. Think of the bad publicity of a government-sponsored botched heroin overdose.
 
theprestige said:
And there's the rub. Lethal injection is every bit as humane as hanging, if not more so. If you do it right. Darat is trying to solve the wrong problem.
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If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Maybe you have more hangman experience than I do, or maybe thought really hard about how that would feel. I'll just go with heroin OD, when I have to choose. Don't ask how I have internet access.
 
PitPat said:
If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Maybe you have more hangman experience than I do, or maybe thought really hard about how that would feel. I'll just go with heroin OD, when I have to choose. Don't ask how I have internet access.
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Until it turns out the prison staff have been cutting the heroin with rat poison.
 
PitPat said:
Bypass all that. If you really want to intentionally kill people humanely in a controlled environment (again, not a fan), OD with heroin. You'd think there'd be a lot leftover in FBI sting operation evidence files.

Of course it would need to be vetted first. Think of the bad publicity of a government-sponsored botched heroin overdose.
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That would work too. Although the quality/reliability of street drugs is rather dubious. The fact is that there is no shortage of readily available drugs that will kill quickly and reliably with minimal involvement of medical persons.
 
Ziggurat said:
Nitrogen gas, I would say.



Electric chair is definitely barbaric. I haven't really looked into lethal injection, there should be a way to do that humanely, but details matter.
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I've made the point above. The religiously tinged notion that execution must be felt as punishment right to the moment of death, requiring conscious realization of the event, is incommensurate with humane death. Is it more moral to kill someone face to face in front of an audience than to lie to them? If you want mercy, tell them they're getting a reprieve and then snuff them in their sleep.
 
bruto said:
[...]If you want mercy, tell them they're getting a reprieve and then snuff them in their sleep.
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Okay, this will work once. Afterwards, every prisoner on death row gets to experience some lovely psychological torture as part of their sentence.
 
PitPat said:
If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

Maybe you have more hangman experience than I do, or maybe thought really hard about how that would feel. I'll just go with heroin OD, when I have to choose. Don't ask how I have internet access.
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I think you missed the point. Lethal injection is not being done right, which is why alternatives are being discussed.
 
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